Tuesday Roundtable recap: Patrick Connor of the National Federation of Independent Businesses, Washington Chapter
In this week’s Tuesday Roundtable, we spoke to Patrick Connor of the Washington Branch of the National Federation of Independent Businesses, previously featured on a WPPA Tuesday Roundtable on Sept. 15, 2020--the height of the pandemic. We will be checking back with him on how Washington’s small and independent businesses have fared since then, and what the future holds for them.
For more than 10 years, Patrick Connor has been Washington State Director for NFIB, the nation’s leading small business advocacy organization. As the Voice of Small Business in Olympia, NFIB members and staff engage the legislature and regulatory agencies on a host of issues including tax and fiscal policy, labor relations, health care, business and professional licensing, environment and land use, government accountability and transparency, as well as economic development and competitiveness.
NFIB’s Research Center has produced a monthly Small Business Economic Trends report, and its Small Business Optimism Index, since 1986. Patrick provided an overview of recent findings that may be of interest to port districts and their tenants.
Patrick is a former local elected official, having served on the Hoquiam City Council.
In today’s Roundtable, we heard:
· The myriad of reasons behind current labor shortages, and ways small businesses are addressing them
· Supply chain issues impacting small businesses
· The way independent businesses will continue to evolve to meet long-term demographic trends
Missed the Roundtable? You can watch the full recording here: https://www.dropbox.com/s/4acn448jbqli0hp/2021-06-08_Roundtable_NFIB_recording.mp4?dl=0
Patrick Connor shared with the port community on the call some interesting resources, listed below.